Customer vetted device status communication system and method

ABSTRACT

A system and method for transmitting device status information from a first internal network, through a first internal network firewall, over an external communications network and to a second network wherein the first internal network includes a marking device and a computing device having a memory. Usage data is collected from the marking device and compared to previously stored usage data to determine the validity of the collected usage data to provide a comparison result. The comparison result is used to determine whether the collected usage data can be transmitted from the first internal network, through the firewall, and through the external communications network to the second network.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for thetransmission of information between a vendor and a customer, and moreparticularly to systems and methods to facilitate customer vetting ofdevice status information prior to transmission to a vendor.

BACKGROUND

In the current market environment, particularly in regard to officeequipment such as printers, copiers, and computers, an economic premiumis placed on the ability for vendors, which lease or rent suchequipment, to interact with a customer regarding the status of theoffice equipment, including the type of and the amount of use to whichthe office equipment is being dedicated. While such usage information isparticularly helpful to a vendor in providing accurate and timelyservices to support the operation of the office equipment, suchinformation also provides the vendor with information necessary toaccurately bill the customer for the use of the office equipmentpursuant to the leasing or rental agreements, hereinafter referred to as“agreements.” For instance, each printer or copier under an agreementcan include a metering device which records the number of sheets ofpaper being copied or printed on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Suchinformation can be required under certain agreements to enable thevendor to provide accurate and timely invoices to the customer.

Getting accurate and timely meter readings from devices located at acustomer facility in the field is therefore particularly desirable. Inmany of these agreements, vendor access to such information is a keyenabler to bill the customer and to provide other services. In most ofthese agreements, the customer is contractually obligated to providethis data. Once the data is received at the vendor location, the data isvalidated to insure that the data represents an accurate representationof the amount of copies being made or printed. In some cases, automatedsystems are put in place to gather usage data from devices in the fieldand to transmit the usage data to the vendor, either from individualdevices or through proxies that aggregate usage data from many devices.

While the collection and transmission of data by a customer and to avendor is technically possible under certain conditions, some customerscan be unwilling to transmit such usage information automaticallythrough a communication network due to network security concerns.Oftentimes, the information technology (IT) department of such customersdoes not allow machine or device data to leave the customer's facility.When a device or a proxy sends the data automatically, the IT departmentdoes not have a mechanism to check all of the data that is beinggenerated and transmitted, so the transmission of the data is blocked,even though the data most often includes only meter readings, which isnot typically considered sensitive data.

Due to security concerns, various methods have been developed to providealternative and acceptable transmission methods. One such method ismanual and time intensive in nature. This manual method occurs where acustomer goes from one machine to the next machine to write down thebilling meter information. Once the meter information is gathered, thecustomer makes a phone call to a vendor service representative or to anon-site data analyst who records the data manually. This method, andothers like it of manually gathering information, requires continuedattention on the part of the customer, which may not always be presentdue to more pressing concerns of the business. In addition, the customercan be frustrated by the phone-in process, since the appropriate servicerepresentative may not be available when called. The manual method canalso be prone to errors.

In other situations, the information is electronically recorded toelectronic media, such as a thumb drive, if this type of capability isenabled and is authorized by the customer. The information can then bee-mailed or physically carried back to the vendor. In some cases,however, the act of physically carrying the data collected from networkdevices to a vendor can also be a security violation. Consequently, inthose situations where a customer restricts access to billinginformation, the resulting loss in revenue can be very large.

SUMMARY

A customer vetted device status communication system and methoddescribed in this application facilitates the transmission of devicedata to a vendor. The system and method provide a tool to automaticallycollect device data which can be reviewed by the customer beforetransmission to a vendor. The review can be either a manual review ofdevice data or can be an automatic review of device data based onpredetermined parameters which can be established by the customer. Inone embodiment, the automatic meter readings take place on a daily basisand the collection of daily meter readings is made on a monthly basisfor transfer to the vendor. The meter reading can be configured for agiven customer site based on the needs and capabilities of the vendorand the customer.

A method of transmitting device status information includes transmittingthe status information from a first internal network, through a firstinternal network firewall, over an external communications network to asecond network. The first internal network includes at least one markingdevice and at least one computing device having a memory. The methodincludes collecting data from the at least one marking device, comparingthe collected data to a predetermined value stored in the memory toprovide a comparison result, validating the acceptability of thecollected data based on the comparison result, and transmitting thecollected data from the first internal network, through the firewall,and through the external communications network to the second network.

A system of transmitting device status information includes a computingdevice, a data vetting application, and a marking device. Data relatedto the marking devices is transmitted from a first internal network,through a first internal network firewall, over an externalcommunications network to a second network. The system includes amarking device configured to generate marked media wherein the markingdevice is operatively connected to the first internal network. Acomputing device is operatively connected to the first internal networkwherein the computing device includes a memory configured to storeprogram instructions and a database. The computing device also includesa controller configured to execute the stored program instructions tocollect data from the marking device, to compare the collected data to apredetermined value stored in the memory to provide a comparison result,to validate the acceptability of the collected data based on thecomparison result, and to transmit the acceptable data from the firstinternal network, through the firewall, and through the externalcommunications network to the second network.

Other benefits and advantages of the customer vetted device statuscommunication system and method will become apparent upon reading andunderstanding the following and specification including the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The preferred embodiments will be described in detail, with reference tothe following figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a communications system enabling the electronictransmission of customer vetted data between a customer and a vendor.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram illustrating an embodiment of acustomer communication system portion of FIG. 1

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a method for the collection and transmissionof customer vetted data.

FIG. 4 is a table including customer vetted data for transmission to avendor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Although the various embodiments are illustrated below in conjunctionwith the processing of communications in an exemplary system, otherparticular system configurations can be used. Those skilled in the artwill recognize that a variety of different communication systemconfigurations are used. Communication systems include those systemsemploying Internet protocol (IP) communications, video calls, multimediacalls, e-mail, faxes, text chat, voice over IP or voice messages as wellas various portions or combinations of these and other types ofcommunications. In addition, the systems and methods described hereinare applicable to the processing of incoming communications, outgoingcommunications or both.

In the drawings, like reference numerals have been used throughout todesignate like elements. As shown in FIG. 1, a communications system 10includes a vendor network 12 operatively connected to a customer network14 through an external network 16. The vendor network 12 includes atleast one vendor computer 18 operatively connected to an internalnetwork 20 which includes a vendor firewall 22. While a vendor computer18 is generally embodied as a personal or desktop computer, othercomputing devices can be used including a mainframe computer, a personaldigital assistant, a laptop computer, and a smartphone. In addition,while one computer 18 is illustrated, more than one computer can beconnected to the vendor internal network 20.

The vendor network 12 is operatively connected to the customer network14 through the external network 16. The customer network includes aninternal network 24 and a customer firewall 26. To facilitatecommunication between the vendor network 12 and the customer network 14,the external network can include any number of different types ofnetworks including one or more of wide area network(s), intranet(s), theInternet or any other type of distributed network. In addition, thenetwork 16 can include, any one of or a combination of, a direct serialconnection, a distributed network such a local area network, a publicnetwork, a metropolitan area network, a wide area network, a satellitecommunication network, an infrared communication network, or the like.Furthermore, the transmission of information within the internalnetworks 12 and 14 can be a wired or wireless link or any other known orlater developed element(s) that is capable of supplying electronic datato and from the connected elements. In addition, the transmission ofinformation to and from the internal networks 12 and 14 to the externalnetwork 16, and the transmission of information within the externalnetwork 16 can be a wired or wireless link or a combination thereof.

As shown in FIG. 1, each of the vendor network 12 and the customernetwork 14 includes the firewalls 22 and 26 which can include either asoftware or a hardware based network security system configured tocontrol the transmission of information to and from the external network16. The firewalls 22 and 26 can each be any known or later-developedcombination of one or more software elements and/or one or more hardwareelements that control access to the networks 12, 14 and 16. Whilefirewalls 22 and 26 are depicted separately, the firewalls 22 and 26 arenot necessarily separate and distinct components. Thus, the functionsand/or operations of the firewalls 22 and/or 26 can be carried out byany one or more known or later-developed software and/or hardwareelements. In an alternative embodiment, the customer network 14 can bedirectly operatively connected to the vendor network 12 therebybypassing any external network, where the security of the informationbeing transmitted is of high importance and has been properly vetted.

A customer facility can include one or more marking devices, such asprinters 30 and 32, one or more printer controllers 34 and 36, and atleast one customer computer 38 including a data vetting application 40.One or more additional customer computers 39 can be included. Each ofthe print controllers 34 and 36 can be operatively connected to one ormore printers 42, 44, 46, and 48. The print controllers 34 and 36 areconfigured to schedule and to optimize multiple printing jobs among theprinters respectively operatively connected thereto. Each of theprinters 30 and 32 includes a status device or meter, not shown, whichprovides status information or data for each printer 30 and 32 over theinternal network 24 to the customer computer 38. Each of the printercontrollers 34 and 36 also include a status device, not shown, whichprovides status information and/or usage data of each of the printers42, 44, 46, and 48 to the customer computer 38. Any type of markingdevice to mark media can be included in the customer facility includingcopiers, printers, and facsimile machines having marking engines usingtoner, liquid ink, wax based ink, and/or solid ink.

While status information, such as control data, process data, anddiagnostic data, can be provided from each of the printers, the usagedata typically considered to be most relevant to the vendor includesmodel identification, the type of impressions being made (color or blackand white), and number of impressions made during the course ofoperation. The status device of each of the printers and the printercontroller are embodied as hardware, firmware, or software residentwithin the respective device controllers and/or memories which receiveand store informational data. The data vetting application 40 isconfigured to provide one, some, or all of the following tasksincluding: to collect the data from each of the printers and/or printercontrollers, to arrange, to modify and/or to annotate the data based oneither predetermined conditions or under the direction of a user oradministrator, to interrogate the status of each of the printers and/orprinter controllers if directed, and to transmit the data once the datais ready for transmission.

FIG. 2 illustrates the customer facility 14 and in particular theprinter 30, the printer controller 34 operatively connected to theprinter 46, and the customer computer 38. Each of the printers isidentified by a machine identifier (ID) which provides a uniqueidentifier used by the data vetting application 40 as described herein.In one embodiment, the customer computer 38 collects data and generatesa data file to be vetted as described herein. The customer computer 39,or any other computer on the internal network 24, can be used to processdata forms, also described herein, before transmission to the vendor.The machine identifiers in different embodiments take many differentforms as long as each identifier uniquely identifies a machine, such asa serial number or a model number. The printer 30 includes a controller50 and a memory 52 each of which are operatively connected to aninterface 54. The printer 46 similarly includes a controller 56 and amemory 58, each of which is operatively connected to an interface 60.The remaining printers and printer controllers of FIG. 1 are not shownin FIG. 2 for ease of discussion, but those printers and printercontrollers can be incorporated into the described system and method andcan include one or more of a memory, a controller, and an interface.Likewise, in other embodiments, additional printers and printercontrollers in any number or combination can be incorporated intodescribed system and method. The interface 54 of the printer 30 printercontroller 34 is operatively connected to the internal network 24.

The customer computer 38 includes an interface 62 operatively connectedto a controller 64 and to a memory 66. The interface 62 receives dataprovided by the printer 30 and the printer controller 34 as well astransmits data from the customer computer 38 to the printer 30 andprinter controller 34 through the internal network 24. While thecustomer computer 38 is generally considered to be a stand-alonepersonal computer configured to communicate with the other devices overthe internal network 24, the customer computer 38 is not limited to astandalone computer but can also include a laptop computer, a personaldigital assistant, and a “smart” phone. Other self-contained computingdevices can also be used. In another embodiment, the internal network 24can be configured as a “cloud” computing network where all theapplications, typically resident on a standalone computer, are locatedin the “cloud”, typically a server. In such a cloud environment, thecustomer computer can include a web browser device, a mobile applicationdevice, a thin client, or a terminal emulator. In each of theseparticular embodiments, the data vetting application is resident in thecloud.

The data vetting application 40 can be embodied as hardware, software,or firmware. If embodied as software, software code is stored in thememory 66 or in the cloud. The data vetting application includes aplurality of modules, where each of the modules is dedicated to aparticular purpose or task directed to the collection and transmissionof the information to the vendor facility.

The data vetting application 40 includes one or more of the following: adata collection module 70, a validation module 72, an organizationmodule 74, an annotation module 76, and a transmission module 78. Thecollection module 70 is configured to collect the informational andusage data stored in the memories of the printers 30 and 46. While onlytwo devices are described, information from additional devices can becollected to provide a single report aggregating data from all of thedevices on the network. In addition, individual reports directed toindividual devices can also be provided. In one embodiment, thecollection module 70 transmits a data collection signal to each of thecontrollers 50 and 56 indicating that the stored data should betransmitted to the customer computer 38. The data collection signal caneither be automatically generated by the collection module 70 accordingto a predetermined schedule or predetermined frequency or the datacollection signal can be manually transmitted by a user or administratorwhen desired. In addition, the data collection signal can request alldata stored in the memories 52 and 58 or can request some of theinformation stored in each of the memories or can request only datastored in one of the memories. When retrieving the requested data, thedata can be configured to include the device data and an exact timestamp of when the data reading was collected. The data reading can alsobe used to collect other types of data that the customer desires toreview. For example, the customer can be notified when a supply of paperis running low. The collection module 70 can also be configured toenable the operator to request an immediate data reading rather than usethe data reading programmed to occur on a reoccurring basis. Inaddition, the collection module 70 can be programmed to not collectcertain sensitive data such as IP addresses, network masks or devicelocations. Such information can however be collected and either deletedor masked using the annotation module 76. Likewise, the collectionmodule 70 can be set to automatically block specific devices such asnon-vendor managed devices that are located on the network.

While the data collection module 70, in one embodiment, is configured tocollect the required information from all of the devices on the network,the identification of the devices on the network for which data isrequired can either be entered manually into the data vettingapplication 40 or the data vetting application can be configured toautomatically discover and identify the appropriate devices located inthe network. The data vetting application 40 can discover all of thedevices on the network or can be configured to discover only certaintypes of devices having predetermined characteristics. This function,however, does not need to be incorporated into the data collectionmodule 70, but can be located as a standalone module or incorporatedinto a different module or provided as a function of the customercomputer.

Upon receipt of the collected data, the data is stored in the memory 66.At this point, the validation module 72, which is configured todetermine the transmissibility of the data from the customer to thevendor, analyzes the data according to a set of predetermined rules, theresults of which can be reviewed if desired before transmission to thevendor. In determining whether the data is transmissible, the validationmodule 72 in one embodiment is configured to include determining whetherthe data is reasonably accurate and determining whether the dataincludes non-transmissible information such as confidential data orother data not relevant to the data to be transmitted.

The organization module 74 is configured to organize the usage data in aform acceptable to both the vendor and to the customer. Some of theorganizational structure of the data provided by the vendor cannot bechanged since certain types of data are required to perform a properdata transmission. Other data, which can be present in the usage dataobtained from the printers, can be removed by the organization module 74based on a predetermined specification or can be removed manually by theuser or the administrator.

The annotation module 76 is configured to enable the user oradministrator to annotate or add notations to provide comments oradditional descriptions to the data as described later herein.

The transmission module 78 is configured to provide for the transmissionof the data to the vendor once the data has been determined to beacceptable for transmission. Under some circumstances, the transmissionof data can be automatically performed. In other circumstances, however,the transmission of data can be prevented by the validation module, forinstance, if the data appears inaccurate, incorrect or is determined tobe otherwise non-transmissible. If the validation module, for instance,flags the data as being inaccurate, transmission is halted and the useror administrator is notified of the existence of the flag. After areview, the user or administrator can determine that the usage data isacceptable and transmit the usage data manually.

When the operator is satisfied that the data is accurate, the operatorcan submit the data to the vendor via one or more of severalpre-configured methods such as email, encrypted email, a file uploadwebsite, a web based drop box, or a person to machine device gateway.The operator can also choose to not send the data electronically. Theoperator can connect to a vendor website to upload the information. Theoperator can choose to make a phone call to the vendor to deliver theinformation verbally.

If the predetermined mechanism for delivery of information is overriddenby the operator, the operator has the option of setting the transmissionmethod back to the default type of transmission. In one embodiment, thedata vetting application 40 can be a dedicated application which hasbeen stored on the customer computer. In another embodiment, the datavetting application is a web tool accessible through a web browser toenable a customer to collect and to view aggregated billing meter data(and any other data) which can be provided by the collection module 70.Once the appropriate data has been collected, the data is placed in theform of a report which is sent to the vendor using the transmissionmodule 78. The collection and transmission functions are less timeconsuming and more accurate than manual readings and the customer isenabled to provide extra information that pertains to billing by usingthe annotation module 76, if desired or if necessary.

In one embodiment, the data vetting application automatically collectsthe data, but prevents transmission of the data in the form of the datareport until after the data has been vetted or provided by the customer.By providing the customer with the option of reviewing all of the dataprior to transmission, the customer understands exactly the nature ofdata being transmitted from the customer to the vendor and eliminateserrors caused by manually reading the data.

The annotation module 76 enables the customer to augment the data reportwith comments, but prevents the actual data, such as the number ofcopies, from being changed. For example, if a machine has a very highjam rate, the number of copies being counted does not accurately reflectthe actual number of usable copies. Many copies are wasted in such asituation. If this situation occurs, the customer can annotate the datain the data report to request a credit for the number of unusablecopies. While the actual data, such as the number of copies made, cannotbe altered, other information which appears during the data collectionprocess can be deleted altogether or at least redacted by making theundesirable data illegible. In one embodiment, the customer vets thedata and deletes all information considered to be private, such as aninternet protocol (IP) address. In addition, the annotation module 76can be configured to enable deletion of those devices that are not partof an agreement, such as non-vendor device. Meter readings can beannotated by an operator to indicate that a meter reading should beadjusted for poor copy credits, for instance. In this situation,however, the actual meter read cannot be adjusted. If a meter reading istagged as being suspect, the operator can either add acomment/explanation or perform a new reading. Customer contactinformation including the name of the operator can be changed and abackup contact can be provided in the event the operator is unavailable.

In one embodiment, the data vetting application 40 includes thevalidation module 72 which checks the validity or accuracy of thegathered data. By providing a validation check at the vendor facility,any errors or discrepancies regarding the data can be detected beforebeing sent to the vendor. Consequently, any detected errors can beresolved before being transmitted.

In another embodiment of the data vetting application 40, the validationmodule 70 can be programmed to automatically validate the collected dataand if validated, the transmission module 78 transmits the validateddata automatically without further review. In this embodiment, the useror administrator can opt out of reviewing every meter reading from everymachine every month. To enable this embodiment, the user oradministrator establishes a set of rules which examine the number ofcopies or prints being made over a predetermined time period. A numberof thresholds are established, which can include a lower threshold aswell as a higher threshold. If the number of copies or printer exceeds ahigher threshold or fails to reach a lower threshold, an automatictransmission of data does not occur and review process is triggeredwhich can include manually vetting the data.

As an example in one customer facility, the operator determines thatmost meter readings are typically approved. In this case, the validationmodule 72 can be programmed to set one or more values or parameters toenable automatic submission of the data (by one of approved mechanisms)if certain thresholds are not exceeded. The operator configures theoperating parameters such that if a data item meets those parameters,then that data item is automatically submitted. If a data item does notmeet those parameters, then the user or operator is notified to reviewthat data item.

FIG. 3 illustrates one example of a method to determine if the databeing collected by the collection module 70 can be transmittedautomatically without further review by an operator. In this example, itis assumed that prior meter readings from a number of printers orcopiers having been saved in the memory 66 for access by the validationmodule 72. In another embodiment, even though the data has been verifiedas being acceptable for transmission to the vendor, the data vettingapplication 40 can be configured to require customer approval beforetransmission occurs. Even if all of the automatic criteria have beensatisfied, providing a mechanism for customer approval enables thecustomer to add comments or a memo about machine credits prior totransmission.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the collection module retrieves and stores acurrent data reading form all of the machines in the network (block100). The retrieval can be started either automatically or uponactivation of a read signal transmitted to each of the machines. In oneembodiment, all of the machines in the network are read, even themachines which do not fall under an agreement with the vendor. Inanother embodiment, only the machines falling under an agreement withthe vendor are read. Once the current data has been stored, thevalidation module 72 retrieves a prior data reading from the memorywhich has not been compared to a current data reading (block 102). Uponretrieval, the validation module 72 compares the current data reading tothe prior data reading (block 104). As a result of the comparison, it isdetermined whether the current data reading is within a predeterminedrange of values A of the prior data reading (block 106). In thiscomparison, the predetermined range of values A is established based ona pattern of usage developed over time. For instance, if 500 copies aretypically made in a single month, the range of values which areacceptable and which do not need further review could be from 450 copiesto 550 copies. In this situation, the predetermined range of values isplus or minus 50 for a total range of 100 centered about the priormonth's usage figure.

If the current data reading is not within the predetermined range ofvalues A, then the validation module 72 flags the current data readingas being suspect (block 108). If the data is flagged as being “suspect”,this designation does not necessarily mean that the data isunacceptable, since there can be valid reasons as to why there is adiscrepancy between the current data reading and the predetermined rangeof values. For instance, if a reading on a meter rolls to over to zeroor if a controller board is replaced, then the current month's billingmeter reading can be smaller than the previous month's billing meterreading. In some situations, even if the data is flagged as beingsuspect, the data is still transmitted to the vendor with an annotationmade to the suspect data by the customer. In another embodiment, thecustomer initiates a new reading to determine if the suspect flag isremoved with the new data.

If, however, the current data reading is acceptable and after thecurrent data has been flagged if the data is suspect, the methoddetermines whether the current data reading increased by greater than apredetermined number B over a predetermined period of time (block 110).In this block, the collection module, while reading the usage data onlyonce over a period of time, such as a month, collects usage datathroughout the month including for instance every day of the month. Theusage data can then be analyzed over a predetermined period of time suchas week, so that trends in usage throughout the month can be determined.If the amount of usage increases over the predetermined period of time(e.g. a week), then the validation module flags the suspect data and seta flag indicating that the operator is to be contacted due to the datareading increase (block 112).

While the validation module is programmed to establish the acceptabilityof the usage data to be sent to the vendor, the collection module 70 andthe validation module 72 can be programmed to respectively collect andvalidate additional information related to the devices which the vendordoesn't require, but which can be helpful to the vendor in supportingthe customer. For instance, the collection module 70 can be configuredto collect fault information which is recorded by the devices. In oneembodiment, the number of paper jams is recorded for access by thecollection module 70. Consequently, at block 100, the collection module100 not only collects usage data, but also collects paper jaminformation. Other types of fault conditions include excess toner usage,excess ink usage, the number of service calls made to repair aparticular device, and the number of service calls made for routinemaintenance.

Using this information, the validation module 72 determines whether themachine being examined has experienced more than a predetermined numberC of predetermined fault conditions D (block 114). If yes, thevalidation module 72 flags the machine as one requiring further reviewby the operator (block 116). If no or if the machine has been flagged atblock 116, the validation module 72 determines whether all of themachine data has been reviewed (block 118). If no, the method returns toblock 102 to continue reviewing the collected data. If yes, thevalidation module 72 review the data to determine whether any of thedata has been flagged (block 120). If it has, the information includingthe flagged data is sent to the operator (block 122). In anotherembodiment, the information is not sent to the vendor, but a message,such as an e-mail message or a text message is sent to the operator toreview the flagged data which can be accessed in memory prior to beingsent to the vendor (block 124). If, however, no flags have been set,then the information requested by the vendor is automatically sent tothe vendor by the transmission module 78 (block 124).

Data is transmitted as vetted data which can be either acceptable dataor suspect data. In another embodiment, a completed form is printed outwith an envelope including a pre-printed mailing address and a meteredpostage. The customer inserts the printed copy into the envelope and ismailed by either the US Postal Service or other carrier. The completedform can include machine readable representations of data including UPCbarcodes and 2D barcodes including Aztec codes. Other types of machinereadable codes can be used. The completed forms using machine readablerepresentation of data can then be automatically processed at thevendor's facility.

While the data vetting application 40 can be configured as a standalonesoftware program incorporating modules which are specifically developedto provide the desired features, off the shelf software can beincorporated into the data vetting application 40. For instance, asoftware package known as Outlook and provided by Microsoft Corporationincludes voting buttons and templates which can be incorporated to allowthe operator to review the data and make changes, approvals, notationsvia e-mail.

In one embodiment, the data vetting application 40 can be implemented onthe customer computer 38 where the application 40 includes software orprogram code which provides the features described herein. In otherembodiments, the data vetting application can be implemented on anindividual processor, server, programmable logic controller (PLC) oranother computing device separate from the customer computer 38. Inother embodiments, the data vetting application can be embodied ashardware, firmware or software, where each module is implemented as anindividual program or program code running independently and exchanginginformation between each other according to the disclosure in order toprovide the robust operation. In addition, while the features of eachmodule are described as having a relatively fixed set of features, oneor more of the feature can be located in other modules if desired. Inaddition, the algorithms described herein, in other embodiments, areembodied as program code or program instructions in software and/orfirmware resident in the customer computer 38 or are embodied as aremote program code or program instructions operatively connected to thecustomer internal network 24 through hardwired connections, connectionsto the internet, or other means of communication to software or firmwareeither wired or wireless.

In addition, the data vetting application 40 can be implemented onspecial purpose computers, programmed microprocessors ormicrocontrollers and peripheral integrated circuit elements, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), ASICs, or other integratedcircuits, digital signal processors, hard-wired electronic or logiccircuits such as a discreet element circuits, programmable logic devicessuch as a PLD, PLA, FPGA, PAL, or the like. In general, any devicecapable of implementing a finite state machine that is in turn capableof implementing the systems of FIGS. 1-3 can be used to implement thedata vetting application 40.

The data vetting application 40 is configured to discover devices on thenetwork 24 and to collect device data at a pre-configured frequency. Thepreconfigured frequency can be predetermined in the collection module 70or can be changed in the collection module pursuant to operator input.The data validation module 72 checks the data and tags the data ofinterest appropriately. The data or a pointer to the data is thentransmitted to a designated individual(s) within the customerenterprise, typically the operator who has access to the customercomputer 38. Data is organized in the organization module 74 accordingto a predetermined format such as a table, an example of which isillustrated in FIG. 4 and described later herein. The operator receivesa reminder, which can be generated by the collection module 70, whenbilling reads are due along with a pointer to the table containing thedata. The operator then has access to the table which is reviewed andmodified if necessary by the annotation module 76.

Furthermore, the methods shown in FIG. 3 can be readily implemented insoftware using object or object-oriented software developmentenvironments that provide portable source code that can be used on avariety of computer, workstation and/or personal digital assistanthardware platforms. Whether software or hardware is used to implementthe disclosed systems and methods is dependent on the speed and/orefficiency requirements of the system, the particular function, and theparticular software or hardware systems or microprocessor ormicrocomputer systems being utilized. The systems and methods describedherein, however, can also be readily implemented in hardware or softwareusing any known or later-developed systems or structures, devices and/orsoftware by those skilled in the applicable art without undueexperimentation from the functional description provided above togetherwith a general knowledge of the computer arts.

FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of a report generated, annotated by,and transmitted by use of the data vetting application 40. In FIG. 4,the system is configured to read meters of all devices on the network onthe last day of the month where Aug. 31, 2012 is used in the example. Atmidnight on August 31, coordinated universal time (UTC) or anotherdesignated time in a specific time zone, the devices are polled to getthe requested data. Polling continues until all of the devices havereported the request data or until 12 Noon, August 31, whichever comesfirst. In this example, the data vetting application 40 indicates thatthere are meters to approve. The designated operator of the customeropens the application and reviews the table of data illustrated in FIG.4.

In this example, the automatic comparison of the prior month's data tothe current month's data is not made. Instead, the customer examines thecurrent data and compares the current data to last month's data whichcan be accessed through the application 40. The customer adds commentsin the column labeled “Customer provided Comment’ because the customeris due some copy credits for paper jams occurring in the machineGYA891505. The report also indicates that the same machine, presumablyfixed, printed an excessive number of documents. The rationale for thishigher volume is noted in the column marked “Customer Provided Comment.”

The volume for the device labeled LBP360395 is blacked out or deleted bythe operator since the device is a non-vendor device. The information isnot seen and the report can be sent with the information missing orredacted.

Pull down menus and/or hyperlinks can be placed in the report which isviewable on the monitor of the customer computer. In this way, thereport can act as a user interface to enable the operator to workdirectly from the report when requesting that an additional task shouldbe performed or requesting additional information. For instance, if theoperator selects the machine having serial number UHA002227, a pull downmenu, or drop down menu, appears which includes a selection such as“read now”. The operator then selects “read now” from the pull down menuto request updated information from the selected device. If new data isavailable, the information in the spread sheet is updated along with thenew read date. The pull down menu can also include other functions suchas a “view now” button which enables the operator to view the currentstatus of the machine including current data information as well asservice calls. If the operator finds that the information is acceptable,the operator can select a “submit” function which encrypts the data andsubsequently emails the information to the vendor.

As described herein, the customer vetted device status communicationsystem and method enables a customer to vet machine data prior tosubmission to a vendor. By enabling a review prior to transmission,concerns of an IT department about automatic data collection andcommunication to a vendor can be reduced or overcome. This result can beprovided even though the external transmission of the usage data has thepossibility of occurring at a much higher frequency and density of datathan an IT department typically finds acceptable. In addition, thepresent system and method performs validation checks at the source (thecustomer site) where discrepancies and other concerns can be resolvedmore quickly. A mechanism for the customer to allow some meter reads tobe sent without vetting and only require the user under certainconditions is also provided. The customer also has the option to addadditional information relevant to billing requirements.

The present disclosure also provides higher customer acceptance oftransmitting data usage information to a vendor, since the applicationcan be configured to collect only certain data based on a predeterminedset of rules acceptable to both the customer and the vendor. Moreaccurate collection of data is also provided since the collection ofdata does not require any manual procedures. In addition, since thesystem and method can be configured before being placed in operation,the directives of the IT department can be satisfied. Data is presentedin a customer readable format, unlike the situation that occurs whendirect proxy connection between a device and a vendor gateway whichprovides data that is difficult to decipher. More accurate and timelybilling is provided by eliminating the need for manual meter collection.Acceptable transmission of data is detectable due to the existence of auser friendly interface.

While various exemplary embodiments have been described and illustrated,it is to be understood that many alternatives, modifications andvariations would be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly,Applicants intend to embrace all such alternatives, modifications andvariations that follow in the spirit and scope of this disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of transmitting device statusinformation from a first internal network, through a first internalnetwork firewall, over an external communications network to a secondnetwork, the first internal network being connected to at least onemarking device and to at least one computing device having a memory, themethod comprising: sending a signal from the at least one computingdevice to the at least one marking device; receiving data at the leastone computing device from the at least one marking device over the firstinternal network in response to the at least one marking devicereceiving the signal from the at least one computing device; storing inthe memory of the at least one computing device data previously receivedfrom the at least one marking device as a predetermined value, thepreviously received data and the data received from the at least onemarking device correspond to data representative of a number of markedmedia being generated by the at least one marking device; comparing withthe computing device the received data to the predetermined value storedin the memory of the computing device to provide a comparison result;generating an indicator that the received data was not within apredetermined range about the predetermined value; and transmitting thereceived data with the generated indicator from the first internalnetwork, through the firewall, and through the external communicationsnetwork to the second network in response to the comparison resultindicating the received data is within the predetermined range about thepredetermined value stored in the memory of the at least one computingdevice.
 2. The method of claim 1, the reception of data from the markingdevice further comprising: receiving data from the at least one markingdevice that includes one of an identification number identifying the atleast one marking device, a type of the at least one marking device, anda time at which the data from the at least one marking device wasreceived.
 3. The method of claim 2 further comprising: organizing thedata received from the at least one marking device into a table storedin the memory of the least one computing device.
 4. The method of claim1 further comprising: enabling with the computing device annotation ofthe data received from the at least one marking device prior totransmission of the received data to the second network.
 5. A system oftransmitting device status information from a first internal network,through a first internal network firewall, over an externalcommunications network to a second network, the system comprising: amarking device having a marking engine that generates marked media witha marking material, the marking device operatively connected to thefirst internal network; and a computing device operatively connected tothe first internal network, the computing device including a memoryconfigured to store program instructions and a database and a controllerthat executes the stored program instructions to: send a signal from thecomputing device to the marking device; store data previously receivedfrom the marking device as a predetermined value in the database of thememory of the computing device; receive data from the marking deviceover the first internal network in response to the marking devicereceiving the signal from the computing device, the received dataincluding data representative of a number of marked media generated bythe marking device; compare the data received from the marking device tothe predetermined value stored in the memory of the computing device toprovide a comparison result; generate an indicator that the datareceived from the marking device was not within a predetermined rangeabout the predetermined value; and transmit the data received from themarking device with the generated indicator through the first internalnetwork, the firewall, and the external communications network to thesecond network in response to the comparison result indicating the datareceived from the marking device is within the predetermined range aboutthe predetermined value stored in the memory of the computing device. 6.The system of claim 5 wherein the data received from the marking deviceincludes an identification number identifying the marking device, a typefor the marking device, and a time at which the data was received fromthe marking device.
 7. The system of claim 5 wherein the memory includesadditional program instructions that the controller executes to:organize the data received from the marking device into a table storedin the database in the memory of the computing device.
 8. The system ofclaim 5 wherein the memory includes additional program instructions thatthe controller executes to: enable annotation of the data received fromthe marking device prior to transmission of the data received from themarking device to the second network.
 9. The system of claim 5 whereinthe memory includes additional program instructions that the controllerexecutes to: modify the data received from the marking device prior totransmission of the data received from the marking device to the secondnetwork.